Car-roof construction.



W. S. BIDLE.

CAR ROOF CONSTRUCTION.

\PPLICATION FILED 05c. 16. 1912.

l,l%,2&, Pate ted May 9,1916.

THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH co., WASIHNGTON, D. c

n shares PA.

WILLIAM S. BIDIIE, CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR 'IO CLEVELAND OAR SPECIALTY COMPANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF WEST VIRGINIA.

can-R001 CONSTRUCTION.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Maya, 1916.

Application filed December 16, 1912. Serial No. 736,919.

and pertains more especially to a car-roof.

having each end-portion thereof comprising a metal roofingsheet which not only extends over and across the adjacent end plate of the framework of the car-roof and from said end plate to and over the adjacent carline of said framework andcovers the space between the two laterally spaced side plates of said framework, but also extends longitudinally of said carline and longitudinally of said end. plate and over side plates and has a downwardly projecting portion extending opposite and along and arranged in close proximity to the outer side of said end plate and is provided adjacent said carline with a flange which projects upwardly into and is covered by a roofing-cap arranged over and extending longitudinally of said carline.

The primary object of this invention is to have said roofingrsheet not only free to be shifted independently and longitudinally of said end plate but attached directly to said end plate and movable by said end plate during any movement of the endplate by any movement of one of. the aforesaid 'side plates endwise independently of the other side plate, occasioned by weaving or racking of the car, to prevent displacement of said roofing-sheet longitudinally of the.

car-roof independently of the aforesaid framework during said weaving or racking 0f the car, to prevent upward displacement of said roofing-sheet independently of said end plate during said weaving or racking of the car, and to permit shifting of said roofing sheet with and during the aforesaid movement of the end plate without interfere ing with the shiftability of said roofingsheet independently and longitudinally of said end plate so as to avoid mutilation of or ,inpiry to said roofing-sheet during the weaving or racking of the car and at the same time prevent such a displacement of said roofing-sheet relative to said end plate as would permit the blowing of rain or snow or dust upwardly between the inner side of the aforesaid downwardly projecting portion of said roofing-sheet and the outer side of said end plate.

Another object is to have said roofingslieet provided at the outer side of each side plate with a downwardly projecting .portion which extends longitudinally of said side plate, and to have said side plate provided at its outer side with an inexpensive but desirable bearing for said portion of said roofing-sheetto have said bearing arranged centrally between the side edges of said roofing-sheet, to have said portion of the roofing-sheet spaced from the outer side of said side plate between said bearing and said edges to permit canting of said roofingsheet in a substantially horizontal plane relative to the aforesaid framework by the aforesaid movement of the aforesaid end plate into a somewhat angular position relative to the side plates occasioned by movement of one side plate longitudinally independently of the other side plate, and to have said roofing-sheet during said canting I of said roofing-sheet move at one side edge thereof as much transversely of the car-roof in one direction as said roofing-sheet moves at its other side edge transversely of the can roof in the opposite direction.

My invention consists in certain features of construction, and combinations and relative arrangement of parts, hereinafter described, pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Referring to said drawings, Figure 1 is a top plan of a portion of a car-roof em. bodying my invention. Fig.2 is a vertical section on line 22, Fig. 1, looking outwardly. Fig. 8 is a vertical section on line 33, Fig. 2, looking in the direction indicated by the arrow. Fig. d is a horizontal section on line l--fl, Fig. 2, looking downwardly. Fig. 5 is a vertical section online 5-43, Fig; 2, looking in the direction indi cated by the arrow. Portions are broken away in Figs. 1 and f to more clearly show the two laterally spaced side plates of the framework of my improved car-roof. Sa d side plates are paralleland arranged horlzontally and constitute the main longitudiranged substantially at a right angle to the side plates A in the usual manner. The application of the side plates, end plates and carlines of the framework of a car-roof relative to each other are too well known in the art to require illustration and description in detail in this specification. The carline C is provided at each end with a downwardlyprojecting'end flange 10 which, as shown in Fig. 3, overlaps the outer side of the adjacent side plate and hasits lower portion extending, as at 1.1, over the top of fascia Fiwhich is arranged at saidside and longitudinallyof said side plate and covers the upper edge of the car-siding or side sheathing 12 overlapping the lower portion of said side ofsaid side plate and applied and secured in place in any approved manline C and extends not only over and longitudinally of said carline and over and across the tops of the side plates A. and beyond the outer sides of said side plates, but between said carline and the end plate B and over and across the topv and longitudinally of said end plate. At the outer side of each side plate A the roofing-sheet G has a downwardly.projectingportion 9 arranged opposite and extending alongsaid side of said side plate and extending over the fascia F at said side of said side plate but spaced from said fascia, as at 6, Figs. 3 and 5. At the outer side of the end plate B the roofingsheet G has a downwardly projecting portion 7 shown as abutting against said side and extending longitudinally of said end plate and into'close proximity to or overlapping, as at 8, Fig. 2, the top of fascia D which is arranged at said side and longitudinally of said end plate and covers the upper edge of the sheathing E whicheverlaps the lower portion of said side of said end plate and is applied in any approved manner; The roofing-sheet G therefore bridges the space between the end plate and the adj acent side of the carline C, and over said carline at the other sideof the carline is arranged a suitably applied roofing-sheet H which extends laterally of and outwardly lfrom the last-mentioned side of said car- The carline C illustrated is therefore overlapped on top by two roofing-sheets G and H which extend over said carline and laterally ofthe carline in opposite directions and also longitudinally of the carline, and each of said roofing-sheets is provided over said carline (see Figs. 2 and 8) with an up wardly projecting side flange 13 which extends longitudinally of the carline. Adjacent flanges 13 of said roofing-sheets are covered by a metal roofing-cap L, which extends from end to end of the carline C, and said cap is provided at each end with a downwardly projecting flange Z which is arranged at but spaced, as at 14:, from the outer side of the adjacent portion of the downwardly projecting portion 9 of the roofing-sheet G,

as shown in Fig. 3, and consequently spaced far enough from the outer side of the adj acent side plate, to avoid interference with the shiftability of said roofing-sheet .inde pendently and transversely of the side plates and consequently to permit canting of said roofing-sheet in a substantially horizontalplane during weaving or racking of the car, and said downwardly projecting flange of said cap is shown attached to the adjacent side plate A by a suitably applied bolt I and nut J (see Figs. 1, 2 and 3).

Each downwardly projecting portion 9 of the roofing-sheet G is shown provided at the inner side of the adjacent end member Z of the roofing-cap L (see Figs. 1 and 3) with a laterally and: outwardly projecting side flange 15 which extends from the lower extremity ofsaid portion of said roofing-sheet upwardly to a point adjacent the top of the carline and is spaced from said member of said cap.

It will be observed that the downwardly projecting portion 7 of the roofing-sheet G terminates in one side edge of said roofingsheet and that the upturned flange 13 of said roofing-sheet terminates in the other side edge of the roofing-sheet, and that each the roofing-sheet G is only in contact with i the adjacent member 16 at a point centrally of said member 16 and spaced, as at 17, from the outer side of the adjacent side plate A between said member 16 and the sideedges of the roofing-sheet to permit canting of said roofing-sheet in a substantially horizontal plane independently of the framework of the car-roof and thereby avoid mutilation of or injury to said roofing-sheet during weaving or racking of the car, and obviously said roofing-sheet during said cant-ing can shift at its inner side edge in one direction independently and longitudinally of the cap L as far as it shifts at its outer side edge in the opposite direction independently and longitudinally ofthe end plate 13. The roofing-sheet G is of course loose enough relative to, the cap. L and framework of the car-roof to permit. said canting of the roofing-sheet, and said canting is facilitated by the semispherical members 16 of the side plates A.

Obviously the cap L prevents upward displacement of the roofing-sheet G at the carline C, but my invention comprises means at the outer side of the end plate B for preventing upward displacement of said roofing sheet at said end plate without interfering with the shiftability of the roofing-sheet independently and longitudinally of said end plate and consequently independently and transversely of the framework of the car-roof. Preferably the end plate 13 is provided with substantially horizontally arranged bolts which have their shanks R extending transversely of and through the end plate. Said bolts are spaced longitudinally of said end plate, and nuts T are screwed onto said bolts at the inner side of the end plate and cooperate with said side of the end plate in preventing outwardly endwise displacement of the bolts. The shanks R extend through the central portions of slots 20 with which the downwardly projecting portion 7 of the roofing-sheet G is provided, which slots are arranged longitudinally'of the end plate B, and said bolts have heads 1' which are arranged at the outer side of said portion of said roofing-sheet and overlap said side of said portion of the roofing-sheet above and below said slots but are loose enough relative to the roofing-sheet to permit shifting of the roofing-sheet independently and longitudinally of the end plate. The downwardly projecting portion 7 of the roofing-sheet G, overlapping the outer side of the end plate B, prevents displacement of said roofing-sheet longitudinally of the car-roof in one direction, and the boltheads 9, overlapping the outer side of said portion of the roofing-sheet are instrumental in preventing displacement of said roofingsheet longitudinally of the car-roof in the opposite direction. However the said bolts, although operating to retain the roofingsheet Gr in place relative to the end plate B and positively preventing upward displacement of said roofing-sheet at said end plate, are not in clamping engagement with the downwardly, projecting portion 7 of said roofing-sheet but have their heads in such close proximity to the outer side of said portion of said Tooling-sheet and the said portion of said roofing-sheet is arranged in such close proximity to said side of said end plate that said side of said end plate and said heads of said bolts prevent any appreciable movement of said roofing-sheet longitudinally of the car-roof without interfering with the shiftability of said roofingsheet independently and longitudinally of said end plate.

By the construction hereinbefore described it will be observed that the overlapping of the outer side of the end plate 13 by the downwardly projecting portion 7 of the roofing-sheet Gr operates to cause said roofing-sheet to be moved by and with the end plate during movement of the end plate in the direction in which said side of said end plate faces; that the overlapping of the outer side of said portion of said roofing-sheet by the heads 7" of the bolts R carried by said end plate and held in position so far, as outwardly endwise displacement of said bolts is concerned by the nuts T operates to cause said roofing-sheet to be moved by and within said end plate during movement of said end plate in the direction in which the inner side of said end plate faces; that the overlapping of the outer side of said end plate by the downwardly projecting portion 7 of the roofing-sheet G and the overlapping of the outer side of said portion of said roofing-sheet by the heads r of the bolts R constitute means whereby said roofing-sheet is kept parallel with said end plate in any position of the end plate and consequently positively moved with said end plate during movement of the end plate into a somewhat angular position relative to the side plates when one side plate moves longitudinally independently of the other side plate during weaving or racking of the car; that said roofing-sheet is however free to be shifted at all times independently and longitudinally of said end plate, and that the top and bottom walls of the slots 20 and the bolts R extending through said slots constitute means for positively holding the roofing-sheet G at the outer side of and below the top of said end plate in position vertically relative to the end plate.

What I claim is 1. The combination, with the two laterally spaced side plates constituting longitudinal members of the framework of a car-roof, transverse members extending between and connected to theside plates, and a roofingsheet extending between and over the side plates and free to be canted in a substantially horizontal plane independently ofv said framework, which roofing-sheet at the outer side of each side plate has a downwardly projecting portion extending longitudinally of said side plate, said roofing sheet being connected to said framework and movable by said framework during longitudinal movement of one side plate independently of the other side plate, of a member arranged at the outer side of each side plate and borne by said side plate and interposed between said side of said side plate and the inner side of the adjacent downwardly projecting portion of the roofing-sheet centrally between the side edges of the roofingsheet, said portion of the roofing-sheet being spaced from said side of said side plate between said interposed member and said edges to permit canting of the roofing-sheet in a substantially horizontal plane independently of the aforesaid framework. v

2. The combination, with the two laterally spaced side plates constituting longitudinal members of the framework of a car roof, transverse members extending between andconnected to the side plates, and a roofing-sheetextending between and over the side plates and free to be canted in a substantially horizontal plane independently of said framework, which roofing-sheet at the outer side of each side plate has a downwardly projecting portion extending longitudinally of said side plate, said roofingsheet being connected to saidj-framework and v trally between the side edges of the roofing sheet, said portion of the roofing-sheet being spaced from said side of said side plate between said semispherical member and said edges to permit canting of the roofing-sheet in a substantially horizontal plane independently of the aforesaid framework.

' In' testimony whereof, I sign the foregoing specification, in the presence of two witnesses. V

'VVILLIAM S. BIDLE.

Witnesses: V 7

B. C. BROWN, 7 y N. L. MODARN LL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

7 Washington, D. G. V i 

